This was a tumultuous year like so many where we have seen so many major events happen. Today on News Talk Online on Paltalk.com we presented a recap of some of the years most important stories.
For me, I selected 5 stories which I thought were of major importance.
1 Obama Elected President of the United States
Barack Obama, the freshman U.S. senator from Illinois was elected to be the 44th President of the United States. Obama becomes the first man of African-American lineage to be elected to the highest office in the land.
One year ago the race was predicted to be between Hillary Clinton, the former first lady and U.S, senator from New York for the Democrats and the former mayor of New York Rudy Guilliani was predicted to lead the charge for the Republicans. While Clinton came close in her contest against Obama, Guilliani flamed out early.
Obama and his running mate, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, eventually went on to defeat Sen. John McCain and his running mate, governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, the first woman on a national Republican ticket.
Obama represents a seed change as to how the world will look at the U.S. It shows the world that a man from a bi-racial background can fulfill the American dream and rise to what can be seen as the most important job on the planet.
2 The Collapse of the Financial Markets
As the economy continued to weaken, we saw a number of banks and brokerage houses fail which led to a massive and controversial bailout for Wall Street. Lehman Brothers. closed its doors. Bear Stearns ended up being bought by J. P. Morgan. Insurance giant A.I.G., which insured transactions between financial institutions, was basically nationalized by the U.S. government. Housing prices dropped and foreclosures were seen at record rates. In addition, the Big Three auto makers in Detroit were also given loans to allow them to continue in business and hopefully stop a recession from turning in a depression.
3 The Terror Attacks in Mumbai
In a coordinated rampage though the streets of this Indian city, Pakistani extremists killed innocent civilians in restaurants, two major hotels and as well as the Mumbai railway station. The Indian response during the attacks was feeble at best and they lost control of the situation which lasted for almost two days. This attack raised tensions between these two countries which have been at odds with each other for the last 60 years. What is even more frightening is they are both nuclear powers.
4 The Russia ??? Georgian Conflict over South Ossetia
We all thought with the collapse of the Soviet Union that the days of Russian aggression was over. Vladimir Putin and his hand picked successor Dmitry Medeyev had other thoughts. While it was unclear at the time who started this conflict, the Russians clearly had an agenda and were prepared to act on it, which the did, and inflicted a lot of damage on Georgia and its armed forces could not handle the much better equipped Russian Army
.
5 The Rise and Fall of Oil Prices
During the summer, we saw petroleum prices rise to record levels. Around the world we saw gas prices escalate on a daily basis. In some parts of the U.S., gas prices at the pump were closing in on $5 per gallon. While to many parts of the world, this looks cheap, American consumers were shocked and cut back on taking to the roads. Surcharges were imposed by airlines and prices on goods skyrocketed in response to the cost of fuel. As the year closed and the global economy weakened demand the prices returned to a more affordable level, closing the year in the low $40 per barrel.
There were a number of other stories that gripped the world that could have made the list. Certainly the devastation of the earthquakes in China, the cyclone that ravaged Myanmar (Burma) and the continual genocides that are occurring on the continent of Africa should not be overlooked. To Iraqis and Afghanis the conflicts in these two countries and the continuing presence of American troops can not be ignored. We are also witnessing this week another round of the never ending hostilities between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
As we move into 2009 and a time of renewal, all we can do is hope that these situations will end and that we can all unite in peace and harmony.
On behalf of all of us at News Talk Online on Paltalk.com, we wish you all a happy and healthy New Year!
<< Back to article
